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Media and Technology Stats and Studies – June 19, 2013

The Center for American Progress analyzed National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) data, concluding that disadvantaged middle school math students are more likely to use computers in class for “drill and practice” functions rather than developing more sophisticated skills. The report noted that black and Latino students are, on average, “two years behind white students of the same age.”

A third of American adults own tablet computers, according to new research from Pew. While tablet ownership is balanced among whites (33%), blacks (32%) and Hispanics (34%), there are large differences in tablet ownership when household income is taken into account. Just 20% of respondents with household incomes of less than $20,000 own a tablet, compared to 38% in households earning between $50,000 and $74,999. Fifty-six percent of respondents in households earning $75,000 or more owned a tablet.

An Actix report found network traffic from iPads has increased four-fold over the past 6 months. The report also found iPads consume 3 times the data consumed by smartphones.

Nielsen released its quarterly Cross-Platform Report showing social networking dominates smartphone and tablet usage. Smartphone users spent an average of 9 hours and 6 minutes using social media apps. Tablet users spent 3 hours and 41 minutes using social media apps. African Americans (69%), Hispanics (69%) and Asians (75%) dominate among owners of mobile devices in smartphone penetration, compared to 57% of Whites.

The Council for Research Excellence presented the results of a soon-to-be released study of how television viewers use social media while watching TV. Among the report’s findings, viewers are more likely to use social media during reality shows than they are to do so during scripted programming. Viewers are more likely to discuss scripted programming after the show has ended. Hispanics are 50% more likely to use social media while watching TV, compared to the general population.

The Center for the Digital Future at USC Annenberg released the results of its 11th annual survey of how consumers use the Internet, and their attitudes about going online. Among the report’s many findings, nearly two thirds of American parents monitor their children’s Facebook use. 48% of respondents’ total screen time was spent watching television. On average, users spent 33% of their screen time on computers. The percentage of people using the Internet to make phone calls jumped from 4% in 2007 to 13% in 2012–the largest increase among all general Internet activities. Forty-one percent of respondents who do not go online reported “no computer/no Internet connection” as the primary reason why. When asked whether the government should regulate the Internet more than it currently does, 42% responded that they “strongly disagree”. Further, since 2012, the number of respondents who reported they are “worried about companies checking what I do online” increased by 9 percentage points from 48% in 2010, to 57% in 2012.

An Oriella Digital Journalism study of 553 journalists globally found most journalists worldwide incorporate social media into their jobs. Fifty-nine percent of journalists worldwide reported using Twitter, although most were concentrated in English-speaking countries. Thirty-nine percent of the journalists break news online first, rather than waiting until the release of the print version of the publication.

At the Cable Show last week, Participant Media’s new cable network Pivot, which will be rolled out to 40 million households on August 1, released a report showing Millenials aged 18-34 are increasingly foregoing cable service in favor of viewing content online. Ninety-two percent of TV viewers in this demographic want Video-on-Demand (VOD) streamed “everywhere and anywhere,” according to the study.